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Former PM H D Deve Gowda said that he will support Rahul Gandhi for the post of PM

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Former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda on Tuesday, expressed that he will render full support to Rahul Gandhi for the PM post after the Lok Sabha polls in 2019.

Addressing a campaign rally in Ballary to support Congress candidate V S Ugrappa, Deve Gowda said that he and his party will completely support Rahul Gandhi for the post of PM after Lok Sabha polls in 2019 and also challenged that he will come up with a strong secular brigade to counter the communal BJP.

When questioned about the senior Congress leader P Chidambaram’s statement in which he had mentioned that the Congress party has not yet declared its PM candidate, Deve Gowda firmly replied that he doesn’t want to react to a statement made by a senior leader.

PTI

 

Arjun Sarja moves HC to quash FIR against him

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Actor Arjun Sarja, who was recently accused of sexual assault by Kannada actor Sruthi Hariharan, has approached the Karnataka High Court seeking the FIR against him in the case to be dismissed. The Cubbon Park police on October 27 had registered an FIR based on her complaint under sections 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty, 354A (Sexual Harassment), and 509 (Word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman).

Actor Sruthi on October 20 in a long Facebook post had detailed an allegation of sexual harassment by Arjun Sarja during the rehearsal of a romantic scene at the sets of bilingual film Vismaya, released in Tamil as Nibunan.

In the post she stated, “During the rehearsal, we delivered our lines and Mr. Arjun hugs me. With no forewarning or permission, he runs his hands intimately up and down my back. He pulls me closer with my body taut against his and asks the director if we could use this idea of foreplay in the scene.”

Later on October 27, the actor approached the police based on which police have registered a FIR. Meanwhile, the Karnataka State Commission for Women has taken suo motu cognisance of the complaints made by her.

“I have written a letter to the Police Commissioner on Saturday and have asked him to submit a report within 15 days time,” Nagalakshmi Bai, Chairperson of the Karnataka Women’s Commission, told TNM.

Sruthi’s allegations created a furore in the Kannada film industry with people working in the industry divided over the issue. Sruthi was accused of seeking publicity and raking up a non-issue to smear Arjun’s reputation. She was also accused by Prashant Sambargi, Arjun’s media manager of carrying out an organised campaign against Arjun and of receiving funds from the US to do so. In the face of abuse and criticism, Sruthi stood her ground and proceeded to file an FIR against Prashant Sambargi for threatening her and against Arjun himself.

 

 

Pure horror, says survivor in Maoist attack that killed journalist, 2 cops

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For Dheeraj Kumar, it was an exciting assignment that turned into a story of pure horror.

“We were planning to cover a newly-built polling station in Nilwaya where people haven’t voted since 1998,” the 37-year-old Doordarshan journalist, who survived the Maoist attack in Chhattisgarh’s Dantewadaon Tuesday morning, said.

Kumar was a part of a team, including cameraman Achyutananda Sahu and light assistant Mormukt Sharma, that the public broadcaster had sent to cover the upcoming assembly election in the state.

A resident Bihar’s Begusarai district, Kumar and his team were heading to Nilwaya about 5 km from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp at Sameli, when they came under the attack. Sahu and two policemen, sub-inspector Rudra Pratap and assistant sub-inspector Manglu, were killed in the ambush at about 11.20 am.

They were being accompanied by security personnel on half a dozen motorcycles, the most favoured vehicle to commute in the Maoist heartland where cars and vans are often known to be blown up in the scores of landmines planted by the rebels.

“At around 10.25 am, I saw the motorcycle which was heading our group, suddenly fall down. My cameraman, who was just behind the first motorcycle, was hit by a bullet and he fell down in front of my eyes. Our motorcycle also lost balance … Luckily, I fell in a ditch and crawled deeper,” Kumar recounted.

“For the next 45 minutes, it was pure horror. I kept lying in the ditch and all I heard was the sound of bullets. I felt that around 50 bullets whizzed past, over my head,” Kumar, who is still at Sameli camp and luckily sustained no injuries, said.

He said before going for the coverage in Sameli, he informed Dantewada’s superintendent of police Abhishek Pallav, who gave his nod and assured that security will be provided.

Pallav could not be reached as he rushed to the spot after the tragic incident.

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Four CRPF personnel killed as Maoists blow up mine-protected vehicle in Chhattisgarh

Journalist abducted, beaten to death in Jharkhand’s Chatra district
“The injured have been brought to Dantewada for treatment. He went to cover development work in that region when the ambush took place. Rest of things are under investigation,” special director general of police (Naxal operations) DM Awasthi said.

Accident on Hebbal flyover Youth killed, two others injured

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A 20-year-old student was killed when the car he was driving jumped the median and collided with an SUV on Hebbal flyover on Tuesday. Two others, including an elderly woman, were injured.

Vehicles were stuck in the consequent pileup there for more than an hour, before the Hebbal police pulled the damaged car to the side of the road.

The deceased, Sachin, was a second-year engineering student at a private college. Afsar, 32, who was driving the SUV, and the passenger, Lakshmi Varadaraj, 61, sustained injuries and are recovering in a private hospital, said the police.

The accident occurred around 1.45 p.m. when Sachin was returning home from college. “He was speeding and and trying to overtake a car, when he crashed into the median. The car landed on the adjacent lane and collided with a cab that was heading towards the airport, before overturning on the flyover,” said a police officer. Passers-by pulled out Sachin and moved him to a private hospital, where he died.

Vehicles moving to the airport were diverted to the service road. It took almost an hour to tow away the vehicles involved in the accident, much to the inconvenience of passengers. “We have not found any documents in the car so far. We are yet to ascertain if Sachin had a valid licence,” a police officer said.

After discharge from AIIMS Goa CM Manohar Parrikar holds first official meeting.

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For the first time since his discharge from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi, Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar, who is battling pancreatic cancer, on Tuesday chaired a meeting of the Investment Promotion Board at his private residence.

The chief minister has not been seen in public since he was discharged from AIIMS on October 14, sparking speculation about his health condition with the opposition Congress alleging that his signature was being forged on official files and demanding that the government release video proof of his health condition.

The move to host the meeting at his residence is seen as a bid to quell mounting speculation about the condition of his health.

Speaking to reporters after emerging from the meeting, minister of information technology Rohan Khaunte said that the chief minister was ‘very good’.

“His health is good. He has chaired the meeting effectively. We have held a one-on-one and a half-hour group meeting, that itself tells of the health status of the chief minister. He has given certain directions on what needs to be done, based on how we need to go about. These types of meetings will be held continuously ,” Khaunte said.

“We have complained (to the police) that there is apprehension that somebody is forging his signatures. We have only made known our apprehensions about a crime that can happen. The file goes (to the CM’s office), Krishnamurthy (principal secretary to the chief minister) says, ‘I have spoken to the CM and he has approved the files.’ We do not know whether this is authentic,” Said Congress legislator Reginaldo Lourenço.

The chief minister is expected to similarly chair a meeting of the state cabinet on Wednesday, the first since August.

Earlier, the chief minister chaired a meeting of Goa’s Investment Promotion Board via video conferencing. However, a suspicious Congress demanded that the government release the video clip showing whether the chief minister really chaired the meeting via video conferencing.

The Congress demand is believed to have prompted the chief minister to summon the members of the board to his residence to hold the meeting.

Earlier, too, the Congress had demanded the state government ‘prove’ that the chief minister is recovering as state BJP president Vinay Tendulkar claimed he was.

“With today’s technology, it is not difficult. Let them show us how he is walking and talking,” Congress spokesperson Jitendra Deshprabhu had said.

Last week, Tendulkar had claimed that Parrikar would resume office in the first week of November.

HT

Nephew of Moulana Masood Azhar killed in Tral encounter

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Two militants including nephew of Jash-e-Mohammad chief Moulana Masood Azhar have been confirmed dead in the gunfight with security forces at Tral in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.

While police said that it was establishing the identity of the slain, the Jash-e-Mohammad militant outfit in a statement issued here to India Today confirmed one of the slain to be the nephew of the outfit’s chief Masood Azhar.

Identified as Mohammad Usman Hyder, the JeM also paid tributes to him as well as the second militant whom it identified as Showkat Ahmad, a local.

A police officer told India Today that two charred bodies of the militants have been recovered from the encounter site and searches in the area are cngoing.

An UBGL-barrel rifle has been recovered from the encounter site, the officer said.

Asked about the recovery of the sniper rifle, he said that so far it has not been recovered but “chances of its recovery cannot be ruled out”.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir, Swayam Prakash Pani confirmed that two militant bodies have been recovered and said that “this was the module responsible for recent stand-off attacks” in area.

The gunfight ensued Chankitar village of Mandoora area of Tral on Tuesday afternoon, soon after a joint team of army’s 42RR, SOG and 180 BN CRPF launched a cordon and search operation following specific information about the presence of some militants there.

As the joint team of security forces intensified searches, the militants hiding in the area fired upon at forces, triggering off an encounter.

During the course of the gunfight, sources said, the house was razed to rubble after a blast and massive searches were launched. Two charred bodies of the militants were recovered, they said.

During last 10 days, security forces in Kashmir were concerned about sniper attacks in which at least three forces personal were killed and 5 got injured.

As per security sources, 4 sniper shooters with sniper riffles are believed to have managed infiltration in early September and are spread in different parts of south Kashmir with Jaish outfit. Usmaan Haider was heading the group.

Gahlot slams Baijal over DTC strike

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Delhi Minister Kailash Gahlot on Wednesday slammed Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal for not intervening in the ongoing DTC contractual workers strike despite the imposition of the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA).

“I have been trying to speak and meet Lieutenant Governor since the last two days over the DTC strike,” the Tansport Minister tweeted.

The Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) contractual drivers and conductors have been on a sit-in for the last 10 days, despite the ESMA being imposed, the Minister said, requesting “the LG to spare some time”.

The Najafgarh legislator said those DTC employees who have been “doing their duties” were being threatened by the “goons”.

“Most of the contractual workers want to report and do their duties but unable to do (so) because of fear created by (the) goons.

“By not taking action against the miscreants Delhi Police is encouraging the strike,” Gahlot added.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also reacted to the Minister’s tweet and said the “LG has constitutional duty to direct Delhi Police and ensure (proper) implementation of (the) ESMA”.

“Most workers want to attend work. They are being prevented by BJP goons. Police not taking action despite ESMA. LG refusing to meet.

“Why is LG not meeting the minister? Why is LG not directing police to act? BJP misusing LG yet again and harassing Delhiites?” the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief tweeted.

Terming the DTC bus services as an essential part of transport, the LG had, on Saturday, imposed the ESMA on the DTC contractual workers strike which prohibits any strike for a period of six months.

Despite the ESMA being imposed and minimum wages being restored, the DTC contractual drivers and conductors continued their strike with five of them going on an indefinite hunger strike.

Why Northeast matters for India-Japan collaboration in Indo-Pacific

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With India’s northeastern region being a pivot area of New Delhi’s Act East Policy, its importance again came into focus during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s annual bilateral summit with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe in Tokyo on October on 28-29.

With Modi describing Japan as the cornerstone of India’s Act East Policy and the two countries agreeing to work together in more concrete terms for the development of the Indo-Pacific region, the Northeast has emerged as a key link in this chain.

The Indo-Pacific region stretches from the east coast of Japan to the east coast of Africa and both India and Japan agree that the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) regional bloc has to play a central role for the peace and prosperity of the region.

According to an India-Japan Vision Statement issued following the Tokyo summit, both Modi and Abe “reiterated their unwavering commitment to working together towards a free and open Indo-Pacific.

“The two leaders also affirmed that Asean unity and centrality are at the heart of the Indo-Pacific concept, which is inclusive and open to all,” it stated.

Under the Act East Policy, the Northeast, which shares historical and traditional bonds with the Asean region, is seen as the springboard for India’s increasing engagements with Southeast Asia and for this New Delhi has roped in Tokyo in a big way.

Japan’s role in development work in the Northeast is also expected to boost connectivity between the member-states of the Bimstec sub-regional grouping.

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (Bimstec), which came into existence in 1997, comprises seven countries lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal — Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Membership in the bloc allows India to engage more with the extended neighbourhood in Southeast Asia under New Delhi’s Neighbourhood First Policy via northeastern India.

This will also help keep in check China’s growing influence in the region through Chinese President Xi Jinping’s pet Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project.

India has not joined the BRI on the grounds that it has put participating nations in debt traps and also does not respect the territorial integrity of other countries.

Last year, India and Japan established the Act East Forum to serve as a driving force for cooperation between the two countries in the Northeast and the second meeting of the Forum was held on October 8 in which key infrastructure projects, including road development, in the region were identified.

“The two Prime Ministers welcomed the progress made for the development of India’s northeastern region through the India-Japan Act East Forum by identifying and implementing projects for enhancing connectivity, sustainable forest and ecological management, disaster risk reduction and people-to-people exchanges,” the Vision Statement said.

At an interaction organised by the New Delhi-based think tank Brookings India ahead of Modi’s visit to Japan, Japanese Ambassador Kenji Hiramatsu referred to a statement by Modi that Japan is the only country with which India will partner on the connectivity agenda.

Hiramatsu said that India and Japan can not only contribute to some infrastructure project in the Pacific, his country is also keen to support development work in the northeastern part of India.

He said that the Act East Forum was set up to discuss how Japan and India can collaborate together in many areas, including infrastructure, people-to-people exchange and disaster management in the Northeast.

He also mentioned some of the key infrastructure projects in the region identified during the second meeting of the Act East Forum.

These include National Highway 40 between and Shillong and Dawki, National Highway 51 between Tura and Dalu — both in Meghalaya — and National Highway 54 between Aizawl and Tuipang in Mizoram.

The possibility of a corridor linking Gelephu, the border area between Assam and Bhutan, and Dalu, the border town between Bangladesh and Meghalaya, in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is also being explored.

This will include the Dhubri-Phulbari bridge project, which will be the longest river bridge in India when completed, as the third phase of the Northeast Road Network Connectivity Improvement Project.

Development of main district roads (MDRs) and other district roads (ODRs), which will have positive socio-economic effect, is also being considered.

“We are very happy to have connectivity projects together in the Northeast to eventually connect with neighbouring countries like Myanmar or Bangladesh,” Hiramatsu said at the interaction.

Disaster management is another area of cooperation India and Japan are discussing and Hiramatsu said that his country has a lot of experience to share with the Northeast, a region that is prone to floods and earthquakes.

The October 8 Act East Forum meeting decided to expedite Japan’s contribution to resilient infrastructures in the Northeast and through capacity development project on highways in the mountainous regions.

Both sides are also discussing knowledge sharing on the issue through a Japan-India workshop on disaster risk reduction.

Following the October 29 summit in Tokyo, India and Japan also exchanged notes on seven yen loan agreements for key infrastructure projects in India, including two in the Northeast — renovation and modernisation of the Umiam-Umtru Stage-III hydroelectric power station in Meghalaya, and sustainable catchment forest management in Tripura.

Biodiversity conservation and forest management projects in Nagaland and Sikkim are also under consideration.

People-to-people ties also form a key aspect in Japan’s engagement with northeastern India and for this it has been decided to promote Japanese language education in the Northeast.

Gauhati University and Cotton University in Assam, English and Foreign Languages University in Meghalaya, and the National Institute of Technology in Nagaland have expressed interest in this.

IANS

1987 Hashimpura massacre: 16 UP PAC men get life

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The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sentenced to life imprisonment 16 personnel of the Uttar Pradesh Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) for killing 42 people in the 1987 Hashimpura massacre in Meerut.

In doing so, the court set aside a March 2015 the trial court verdict giving the 16 PAC personnel the benefit of doubt and acquiting them.

There were originally 19 accused but three had died during the trial.

The killings took place during a riot in Meerut when the victims were picked up from the Hashimpura neighbourhood by the 41st Battalion of the PAC during a search operation.

The charge sheet was filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Ghaziabad in 1996.

The case was transferred to Delhi in September 2002 on the order of the Supreme Court following a petition by the families of the massacre victims and survivors.

A sessions court here in July 2006 framed charges of murder, attempt to murder, tampering with evidence and conspiracy against all the accused.

IANS

RBI governor may consider resigning after rift with govt: report

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Indian television channels CNBC-TV18 and ET Now cited sources as saying that Patel could quit.

The RBI and the finance ministry declined to comment.

The government has invoked never-before-used powers under the RBI Act that allow it to issue directions to the central bank governor on matters of public interest, the Economic Times newspaper reported.

It said the government had sent letters to the RBI governor in recent weeks exercising powers under section 7 of the RBI Act on issues ranging from liquidity for non-bank finance companies, capital requirements for weak banks and lending to small- and medium-sized companies.

Section 7 says that ‘the Central Government may from time to time give such directions to the Bank as it may, after consultation with the Governor of the Bank, consider necessary in the public interest’, a statute that has not been used in independent India, according to the Economic Times.

The 10-year benchmark bond yield rose to 7.87 per cent from its previous close of 7.83 per cent.

The rupee fell to 73.99 to the dollar from 73.6750 on Tuesday, after touching 74.04, its lowest since October 15.

“It is difficult to believe that the RBI governor will resign because it is unprecedented and would look quite irresponsible and (an) immature step,” said a senior trader at a foreign bank. “But it is quite worrisome to see the government trying to continuously interfere into the RBI’s operations.”

Tensions between the RBI and the government have spilled into the public domain after Deputy Governor Viral Acharya said last week that undermining central bank independence could be “potentially catastrophic”, indicating the authority is pushing back against government pressure to relax its policies and reduce its powers ahead of a general election due by May.

Adding to the row, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley blamed the central bank for failing to stop a lending spree during 2008-2014 that left banks with $150 billion of bad debt.

Patel and other regulators, including the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority, met Jaitley and other top finance ministry officials at a meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council on Tuesday to discuss the liquidity crunch.

However, there was no sign of resignation by Patel at the meeting, officials said.

Patel and his deputy governors are expected to meet top finance ministry officials on Friday.

(Reuters)

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